The 11th Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo, which will be held from Jun. 30 to Jul. 2, will celebrate the UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy with a line-up of chefs from 23 such cities.
The news was announced yesterday by the organizing body of the expo at a press conference.
According to the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO), part of the organizing body, the Expo will bring together renowned chefs from Cities of Gastronomy around the world.
The chefs will present culinary arts at the City of Gastronomy Showcase, which the MGTO expects to “foster gastronomic culture exchange and present wondrous experiences in tourism and gastronomy.”
In addition, Chinese online travel agency Trip.com Group will officially unveil the winners of the Trip.com Group Gourmet 2023 Global Restaurant Awards on the first day of the expo and invite travel and gastronomic connoisseurs to visit the expo.
Meanwhile, during the expo period, the Trip.com app will debut the “MITE x Gourmet” themed page which displays a variety of Macau tourism products including set meals, hotel accommodation and travel notes.
On a local scale, 18 local catering businesses will serve delicacies at the Gastronomy Pavilion this year, some of which are on the awardee list of a marketing award organized by a local catering association.
As a new highlight this year, The Cellar will bring together wine and related products for sale by regional exhibitors.
In response to Macau’s role between China and the Lusophone world, Portugal will celebrate its own pavilion at this year’s expo, the organizers disclosed. Meanwhile, Portuguese offshore island Madeira will have its own pavilion next to the Portugal pavilion.
The organizers remarked that this year will see nearly 200 stalls in the international pavilion, which will comprise exhibitors from Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, as well as Latin America. It was highlighted that the stalls of the first three countries are featured stalls, with larger scales and more eye-catching designs.
Enterprises from the four major industries including health and wellness, modern financial services, high technology, conferences and exhibitions, commerce and trade, and culture and sports will join as exhibitors at the new “1 + 4” pavilion. Advanced technology and smart tourism products will be showcased.
The Macao International Health Management and Wellness Tourism Forum and the Combining Capital, Intelligence and Commerce to Build a Cultural Tourism and Financial Ecosystem — Macao Cultural Tourism and Finance Salon will be held to support the development of the four major industries in accordance with the development strategy of “1+4,” which emphasizes adequate diversification.
Buy-one-get-one free air ticket promotions will be staged at the expo. The organizers revealed that the expo will join forces with Air Macau and EVA Air from Taiwan to make such offers in partnership with local travel agency exhibitors.
The expo will be open to the public and admission is free of charge. There will also be numerous lucky draw opportunities. AL
